The free half day event is aimed at educating merchants who want to sell on the platform and is being supported by the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and the SME Association of Australia (SMEA).

Amazon hasn’t confirmed the launch date for its Australian marketplace but is in the process of opening its first local warehouse, a 24,000 square metre fulfilment centre in Dandenong South.

Sales from Marketplace sellers now represent over 50 per cent of all items sold on Amazon websites globally, and the marketplace could provide a boost to smaller brands, helping them grow into sizeable businesses in their own right.

A similar phenomenon occurred around a decade ago when pureplay online retailers like Kogan and Catch of the Day used eBay sales to grow into serious retail operations. But first brands need to understand Amazon’s rules, otherwise they’ll be penalised for not providing a good customer experience.

The seller event will feature keynote presentations from Amazon Australia Country Manager, Rocco Braeuniger, and Head of Amazon Marketplace in Australia, Fabio Bertola, as well as insight from experts and entrepreneurs.

Attendees will include local retailers, Australians running established SMEs and aspiring entrepreneurs planning to launch a start-up to use Amazon’s Marketplace to reach millions of customers, the company said.

“The internet and technology have the power to level the playing field between big and small businesses, empowering Australian companies, large and small, to grow their sales and their business online,” said Rocco Braeuniger, Australian Country Manager, Amazon.

“We look forward to enabling local businesses to make their products available to a wide audience, not only in Australia, but also worldwide.”

Also speaking at the summit will be Adam Mills, CTO and Founder of Australian business KoalaSafe, which has seen incremental year on year growth in sales, with Amazon Marketplace being its biggest channel.

“Amazon launching in Australia marks an exciting time for Australian entrepreneurs,” Mills said. “For those who are selling physical products, Amazon provides a great opportunity to get these products in front of customers and we encourage businesses to take full advantage.”

The Author

Tess Bennett

Tess Bennett is the editor of Which-50 and is responsible for leading the publication’s daily coverage of Australia's digital businesses for C-Suite executives, strategists, founders and directors. As the former editor of Internet Retailing Australia and journalist for Inside Retail, Tess has five years experience covering retail and ecommerce. At Which-50 Tess reports on a broad range of topics including technology, the industrial internet, analytics and digital marketing.

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